Mix current and classic decor for an eclectic look

January 27, 2013

The idea of absolute allegiance to a given style in home décor is not much honored these days. Even for very style-conscious customers, designers are likely to blend the old and the new. The same is true of homeowners who create their own interior designs.

Sam Guttman, owner of Church Street Antiques in Bethlehem, says mixing old and new is fine. "I get in furniture of all vintages and styles. Pretty much in any space, scale and functionality is more important than a specific style," he said.

Integrating heirlooms

"Personally, I love to mix like that," said Connie Postupack, a designer with Brownstone Design Group, Bethlehem. Often, she said, the issue arises when homeowners want to find a place for a treasured piece of furniture that's part of a family's inheritance. "To make these older pieces work, you often must do things to bring them into this century" – but even minor changes to an antique can destroy its value.

It's wise to have an appraiser establish that refinishing a prized table or reupholstering a favorite chair won't ruin it. (Or to start with a piece that has some interesting features but not much intrinsic value.) Then the trick becomes devising the upgrade that will fit it to the rest of the room. "I found a chair with a great-looking frame," Postupack said. "It had great guts. Many people saw it in the shop and loved it. When I put on a fresh linen seat, it looked updated." Reupholstered, the chair was easier to integrate into a room design – without touching the finish.

Postupack emphasized that it's helpful not to get stuck with a room's current arrangement of furniture. Integrating a new piece or a new old piece can work best if everything is shuffled, even to the extent of emptying the room and working out a fresh configuration from scratch.

To her eye, many combinations of form and color across styles and historical eras work successfully. "Certainly I've seen it done wrong," she said. "But an 18th century piece can look fabulous in a room with neutral, sleek, clean-lined furniture. A chandelier all dripping with crystal could work there. Some people use '50s or '60s colors, turquoise or avocado – not my favorites, but in a white room they can look smashing."

Mixing, not

necessarily matching

"I really think people are more eclectic today," said Sue Buss of Susan M. Buss Interiors near Emmaus. "This works in just about every room of the house. It helps to bring in the right colors and textures, and to balance out the room. "

"In these kinds of combinations, I like it when shapes in the room are mimicking each other – but not too close together. For instance, don't put a round lamp on a round table. They probably belong across the room from each other."

Buss also likes the use of vintage fabrics to bring old and new styles together. "You can cover an ottoman or make drapes with them, and that can help," she said. "When you're mixing this way, it helps to have strong pieces to start with."

"Many people are afraid of these combinations. They like to stay in a safe zone. But I don't think they should feel that way. Old pieces often have a soul to them. When they're used right, they can give the room a whole new direction. They may not be in perfect shape, but they have their own stories."